PROVIDENCE, R.I.—A near-record number of students are attending public colleges and universities in Rhode Island, even as funding for the system continues to fall.
Enrollment figures for the fall semester show more than 43,224 students at the University of Rhode Island, Rhode Island College and Community College of Rhode Island. The Office of Higher Education says that's just 188 students below the record set one year earlier.
But officials say funding levels for public higher education are below those of 1998, when there were 5,000 fewer students in the system.
With the state likely facing another budget deficit next year, the Board of Governors for Higher Education plans to make the case to Governor-elect Lincoln Chafee and the General Assembly for increased support of public colleges.
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Information from: The Providence Journal, http://www.projo.com/
